Botanical classification: Prunus persica. 
In a continuing effort to improve the quality of shipping fruits, I, the inventor, typically hybridize a large number of peach, nectarine, plum, apricot, and cherry seedlings each year. The present invention relates to a new and distinct variety of nectarine tree, which has been denominated varietally as xe2x80x98EARLY PEARLxe2x80x99. The present variety was hybridized by me in 1997, grown as a seedling on its own root in my greenhouse, and transplanted to a cultivated area of my experimental orchard at Bradford Farms near Le Grand, Calif. in Merced County (San Joaquin Valley). The variety was developed as a first generation cross using xe2x80x98July Pearlxe2x80x99 (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 10,293) white flesh nectarine as the selected seed parent and an unnamed nectarine as the selected pollen parent. Subsequent to origination of the present variety of nectarine tree, I asexually reproduced it by budding and grafting in the experimental orchard described above, and such reproduction of plant and fruit characteristics were true to the original plant in all respects. The reproduction of the variety included the use of xe2x80x98Nemaguardxe2x80x99 rootstock (unpatented) upon which the present variety was compatible and true to type.
The present variety is similar to its selected seed parent, xe2x80x98July Pearlxe2x80x99 (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 10,293) nectarine, by producing nectarines that are globose in shape, fairly firm in texture, mostly red in skin color, and white in flesh color, but is distinguished therefrom and an improvement thereon by producing fruit that matures about six weeks earlier.
The present variety is most similar to xe2x80x98June Pearlxe2x80x99 (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 9,360) nectarine by producing nectarines that are white in flesh color, nearly full red in skin color, and sweet subacid in flavor, but is distinguished therefrom and an improvement thereon by having leaves with globose instead of reniform glands and by producing fruit that matures about sixteen days earlier and is globose instead of oblong in shape.